myUSI requires popups in order to work.

If you computer is using software to block pop-ups, you will not be able to access myUSI until you configure it to allow pop-ups for the myUSI website.

If you have any pop-up software enabled on your computer, you will get a page starting with Browser Problem: Popup windows have been suppressed when you try to go the the myUSI site (http://my.usi.edu). If you get this error, follow the steps outlined below to fix the problem.

What are popups?
Popups, or pop-ups, are small windows that open up automatically when you visit a web site or when you click on a link. Often they are used to display extra information or add functionality to a site.

Popups have received a bad name because they are often abused by websites seeking to push more advertising in front of your web browsing session. Also, many people have computers infected with worms and viruses that pop up advertising. If your computer constantly pops open windows even when you aren’t actively browsing the web, you probably need to scan your computer for viruses. A good free virus scanner that will work through the web can be found at http://housecall.trendmicro.com.

To address these problems many web browsers now include pop-up blockers to try and stem some of the annoying behavior. Also, there is a whole industry of software developers that create add-on software to aid computer users in blocking popups.

There’s only one problem.

Not all popups are bad.

As web applications move more and more towards mimicking software that exists on your computer desktop, they will increasingly mimic traits of those applications like popping up messages or opening items in a separate window. If your popup software blocks this behavior, those web applications won’t work for you. myUSI is an example of this and needs popups to be enabled for it to fully function.

How do I disable pop-ups?
Unfortunately, there are literally hundreds of popup blockers out there. Below, you will find a short list of instructions for configuring some of the most popular popup blocking tools and web browsers with popup blocking capabilities to work with myUSI:

You may have more than one of these installed and active on your computer. Please disable pop-up blocking in ALL of them before proceeding.

If you still get the Browser Problem: Popup windows have been suppressed error message after completing one or two of these sections, it probably means that you still have more pop-up blockers installed.

We have had users with up to 5 popup blockers installed and each had to be disabled before they could login successfully to myUSI.

Microsoft Internet Explorer
After Windows XP service pack 2 is installed, Microsoft’s Internet Explorer gains its own popup blocker. When it is installed it is turned on by default and set to the Medium security setting which will block most popups. Enable popups for myUSI by doing the following:

1. Launch Internet Explorer
2. Go to the Tools drop down menu
3. Select the Pop-Up Blocker
4. Then select Pop-Up Blocker Settings
5. In the new window that opens, type my.usi.edu the Address of Web site to allow field.
6. Then click the Add button
7. You Should now see my.usi.edu in the Allowed Sites section
8. Now click the Close button and shut down and restart Internet Explorer
9. Now open Internet Explorer and try logging into myUSI again.

Google Toolbar
Many people have the Google toolbar added to their Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox browser. This toolbar includes its own popup blocker. Unfortunately, there is no way to add an Allowed Site to this tool, so you will have to remember to disable popup blocking when you visit myUSI and re-enable popup blocking when you leave myUSI. Or you could just uninstall the questionably useful Google Toolbar.

The Google Toolbar looks something like this:

To disable Google toolbar’s pop-up tools when logging into myUSI:

1. Open Internet Explorer with the Google Toolbar installed
2. Go to myUSI by typing my.usi.edu in the Address field
3. The myUSI “Disable pop-up blocker” warning should appear and the Google toolbar will state “some number” blocked next an icon of application windows.
4. Click on the … blocked icon
5. The pop-up blocker icon will now change to say Site Pop-ups Allowed or Pop-ups Allowed or Pop-ups OK
6. Reload the page by clicking the refresh button in Internet Explorer
7. You should now be able to access myUSI

Yahoo Toolbar
Many people have the Yahoo toolbar added to their Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox browser. The Yahoo Toolbar is often installed without users really knowing it because it is bundled with lots of free software available on the Internet, including Yahoo Instant Messenger, and the Shockwave plugin for most web browsers.

Like most Internet Explorer toolbars, the Yahoo Toolbar includes its own popup blocker. Fortunately, there is a way to add an Allowed Site to this tool, so you can configure it to disable popup blocking when you visit myUSI from now on.

Or you could just uninstall the questionably useful Yahoo Toolbar.

The Yahoo Toolbar looks something like this (the Pop-Up blocker icon has an orange box around it):

To disable pop-up blocking for myUSI in the Yahoo Toolbar, do the following:

1. Open Internet Explorer
2. Go to myUSI by typing my.usi.edu in the Address field
3. Click on Yahoo Toolbar’s PopUp Blocker tool (featured in orange box in the linked image above)
4. Select Always Allow Pop-Ups From…
5. Then select myUSI or my.usi.edu from the Sources of Recently Blocked Pop-Ups list and click Allow.
6. Reload the page by clicking the refresh button in Internet Explorer
7. You should now be able to access myUSI

AOL Toolbar
AOL’s client program includes a popup blocker as well.

To force AOL’s software to allow popups from myUSI do the following:

1. Startup and Login to your AOL client program.
2. Click Settings on the AOL toolbar.
3. Click Pop-Ups in the Essentials tab.
4. When the Pop-Up Control Settings window opens up, click on the Web Pop-Ups tab
5. Then, select Allow Web pop-ups from these sites from the available options.
6. Type my.usi.edu and click Add
7. Then Click Save.
8. Now, logout of AOL and then log back in.
9. Now try logging into myUSI again, by going to my.usi.edu
10. You should now be able to access myUSI

Firefox
Firefox is superior web browser that is available for free under an Open Source license. It has received numerous awards including PC World Magazine’s 100 Best Software Products of 2006 and comes in regularly updated versions on almost every desktop operating system including Microsoft Windows, Apple’s Mac OS X, and Linux. You can pick up a copy of the Mozilla Foundation’s Firefox browser for you operating system by going to http://www.getfirefox.com

To enable popups for my.usi.edu in Firefox, do the following:

1. Launch the Firefox browser.
2. Click on the Tools drop down menu.
3. Select Options… from the Tools menu. Mac users should go to the Firefox toolbar menu and select the Preferences… option.
4. Select the Content tab.
5. Click the Allow Sites button across from the Block Pop Up Windows button.
6. Type my.usi.edu in the Address of website text box.
7. Click the Allow button.
8. Then click the Close button to exit the Options or Preferences window.
9. Now close the browser and restart it.
10. Then try logging into myUSI again, by going to my.usi.edu
11. You should now be able to access myUSI

Norton Internet Security
Norton Internet Security (NIS) is a suite of programs that works to protect your computer from a whole host of nastiness. Unfortunately, its privacy guard, popup blocker, and firewall have a tendency to be draconian in its enforcement and often catches perfectly safe applications, websites, and practices in its net all in the name of security.

MyUSI has particular problems with Norton Internet Security. In order to access myUSI with Norton Internet Security installed, you will need to make Norton Internet Security PERMIT actions from myUSI (my.usi.edu and myUSI’s mail server(mail.usi.edu):

1. Open the Norton Internet Security (NIS) control panel. You can access it by right-clicking on the NIS icon in the system tray of your computer (down on the right by your computer’s clock) and then clicking Norton Internet Security, or by double-clicking the Norton Internet Security icon on the computer’s desktop or by finding the Norton folder in your Windows Program’s menu (Start Button - All Programs - Norton ).
2. Next, click on Privacy and then click Configure
3. You want to add the following addresses to the list of sites and you will need to set all the options to Permit
   1. Add my.usi.edu, then set all options to Permit
   2. Add mail.usi.edu, then set all options to Permit
4. Click OK, then close the Norton Internet Security (NIS) control panel
5. Close all the web browsers and then try accessing myUSI

You may also have to try these options if the instructions above don’t match your version.

6. Open the Norton Internet Security (NIS) control panel. You can access it by right-clicking on the NIS icon in the system tray of your computer (down on the right by your computer’s clock) and then clicking Norton Internet Security, or by double-clicking the Norton Internet Security icon on the computer’s desktop or by finding the Norton folder in your Windows Program’s menu (Start Button - All Programs - Norton ).
7. Select Norton Antispam.
8. Select Status and Settings.
9. Select Popup Blocking.
10. Click on Configure.
11. To prevent all pop-up windows, make sure there are ticks in Turn on Ad Blocking, and Turn on Popup Window blocking.
12. Click on Advanced - to set Ad Blocking for individual sites.
13. Click on Add Site - under the left hand window.
    1. Type in my.usi.edu and click OK
       (this may be sorted, and appear under the heading usi.edu)
14. Click on Add - under the right hand window.
15. In the new window that opens
    1. Type in my.usi.edu
    2. Click on Permit - this will permit pop-up windows for this site only
16. Click on OK to save these settings.
17. Click OK, then close the Norton Internet Security (NIS) control panel
18. Close all the web browsers and then try accessing myUSI